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Friday, April 30, 2010

The Magic Warbleby Victoria Simcox267 pagesMiddle Grade FictionTwelve year old Kristina feels like the most unpopular girl in her school. The kids all tease her, and she never seems to fit in.

But when she receives an unusual Christmas gift, she suddenly finds herself magically transported to the land of Bernovem, home of dwarfs, gnomes, fairies, talking animals, where she is the one who must save the day.

When your best and only friend is a rat – literally – you know you’re life sucks. That’s the reality for twelve-year-old Kristina. She doesn’t fit in, but in the ugly duckling to beautiful swan idea, she is magically transported to a world where she is important.

She is the Chosen One who must save the magical world, restore peace and harmony, by returning the Magic Warble to it’s rightful home and releasing the land from the control of the nasty evil Queen Sentiz.

And so Kristina’s adventure begins but now she’s the big shot, someone who is honored and respected. Magic is everywhere in the Magic Warble which offers up interesting characters and fantastical creatures such as dwarves, fairies, gnomes and lets not forget the talking animals.

Now she can talk to her best friend, yeah, Raymond, the rat, which is a fun. Who doesn’t like talking animals? Wouldn’t you like to talk to your favorite pet?

But Kristina also makes new friends on her journey, including the handsome Prince Werrien and couple of fun fairies who help her. Her quest is fraught with peril and danger, as well as excitement and fulfillment.

As Kristina gets further into her destiny the choices and tests become more difficult. She must learn to overcome her doubts, believe in herself, and transform into a leader and savior to many. One of the best parts of the book is seeing the transformation of Kristina from awkward unsure girl, to a self-possessed young woman.

Intertwined with all the drama and intrigue is a fair dose of humor that will keep you enjoying The Magic Warble throughout. Kristina finds her spunk, learns to believe in herself, the ordinary becomes extraordinary, good battles evil, friendship blooms and imagination is king in this enchanting tale of magical adventure and action. The end is bittersweet but inspiring in that you know Kristina is changed in positive ways and will be just find.

I’d recommend this for younger middle grade readers who enjoy fantasy, want an enchanting tale full of enjoyable characters and a story that entertains while sending a strong message of friendship, strength, hope and acceptance of oneself. This is a book I would have loved to have my parents read aloud when I was younger – it’s good family fun.

The Cover: It’s geared toward younger readers so I think it works for that age group. I like that you see not only Kristina, Prince Werrien and the Queen, but also the fairies and Raymond. It’s like a lovely colored pencil drawing and the colors and beautiful.

First Lines:Kristina awoke when the jangling of her alarm sounded right in her ear. She reached over to her night table and gave her clock a good whack and then stuffed her head under the pillow. “Oh, I don’t want to get up,” she mumbled.These first lines do nothing for me. Waking up in the morning is boring. If you want to start it with her waking up, why not have awake to the beady eyes of a rat on her chest. Creepy and, well, yuck! – until you find out that it’s her best friend Raymond. I’m a big believer in awesome first lines to get me hooked, and this could have been better. Luckily the adventure down the laundry chute starts soon.